


The One Where Belle is a Real Estate Agent and Gold is a Ghost

by RosexKnight



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: F/M, Ghosts
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-11-02
Updated: 2017-11-02
Packaged: 2018-08-28 14:24:00
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,901
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8449693
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RosexKnight/pseuds/RosexKnight
Summary: Belle is a real estate agent tasked with selling the odd pink victorian house in Storybrooke. What she did not count on was the previous owner still being around. And being VERY picky about who his house is sold to.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> ((A late Spoopy-ish Halloweebn fic that I just got the idea for today. No idea what to call this 'verse but I DEFINITELY need more of it in my life after writing it. Also yes I need help with a title. Please.))

The door creaked as it opened, the hinges old and in much need of repair. The victorian house was empty, but not in disrepair. It’s previous owner had kept things in perfect order, right down to the hundreds of knick-knacks and antiques all meticulously arranged on mantles and book cases and desks. The furniture was all vintage, now perfectly protected with plastic dust-covers to make sure they didn’t deteriorate as they sat. Really, the only thing wrong with the house was the fat that it was pink, but Belle could work with that. It should have been an easy sell. Except for one detail.

The shudders suddenly rattled as Belle shut the door and turned on the lights in the foyer. A chill came over the air, making her shiver. The lights flickered off and on as she placed her purse on the table to go over some notes on her clipboard.

“Get out…” A voice rasped. “Leave…”

“It’s just me.” Belle said, rolling her eyes.

“Oh.”

The chill in the air left, the shutters growing still and the lights ceased their flickering. When Belle looked up from jotting down a note about the hinges, he was before her. Save for his slightly corporeal look and the fact that he was floating, the man in front of her looked perfectly normal. He wore the same red and white striped tie and black suit jacket as he always did. After all, ghosts didn’t have the need or ability to change. Something he’d told her multiple times he hated.

“Have you sold it yet, dearie?”

“Obviously not.” Belle said, stepping past him to go further into the house. “Honestly was the scene this afternoon necessary?”

“Of course it was!” Gold said, following her. “The family had a dog. A sheep dog. You cannot bring an animal like that into a house like this. There’s not nearly enough land for it. It would have far too much pent-up energy and simply ruin the house.”

“I didn’t know you were a dog expert.”

“I met a few sheepdogs in my time.”

“In Glasgow?”

“Yes.”

Belle only hummed as she walked up the stairs, taking note of any step that squeaked under her heels. When she was first tasked with selling the house of Mr. Gold, the so-called beastly dragon of Storybrooke, she hadn’t expected him to still be present. At first, it had been quite unsettling. He’d done everything he could to make her leave. Rattled shutters, opened cupboards when her back was turned, stacked chairs, turned off and on electronics randomly, but nothing had worked. Belle didn’t necessarily believe in ghosts, but she was curious. One night, she’d brought a Ouija board and set it up in the living room. She didn’t even have the time to ask one question before he’d appeared before her, knocking the game off of the table and scolding her (“Do you not watch horror movies, dearie?! Honestly have you no common sense at all?!”) Since then, selling the house had proven very difficult.

“What are you doing?” He asked as she opened another door.

“If I’m ever going to sell this house I need to fix all of the creaks. That will stop you from using them at least.”

“I won’t scare out every future tennant.” He said with a frown. “You simply have to find someone worthy of my house.”

“And all the belongings in it.” She finished. “Why didn’t you want an estate sale?”

He didn’t answer, only frowned at her as she continued her inspection of the house. It was a nice house. The kind she would have loved to own for herself, really. It was antique and hand-built. In all her years of selling she’d never encountered a house with quite so much character. Or with the past resident living there. Belle turned, finding him staring at her. She wondered if he remembered she could see him. Not everyone seemed to be able to, though she wasn’t sure if that was his choice or not.

“What?”

“Nothing, dearie.” He mumbled.

Not for the first time, Belle wondered what kind of man he’d been when he was alive. He was abrasive and prickly and just plain mean sometimes, but she also found he was somewhat sweet when he wanted to be. Sometimes.

“Well what kind of tenant are you looking for?”

“Pardon?”

“You won’t sell until I find someone who suits the house. Who would you be looking for?”

Gold tilted his head, glaring at her at first, but soon his expression softened. A silence passed between them, and Belle found her arms prickle in gooseflesh as the air became cold around her. She supposed when you’re dead, something like time didn’t matter. She’d asked him once how he died, but the story changed every time. One day it was a heart attack, the next he’d been murdered, so she stopped asking. But something was keeping him here nonetheless. She wanted to help, truly she did, but any attempts to talk about it with him only proved to make his mood sour and she did not fancy making him any angrier than he seemed to be.

“What I want doesn’t matter.” Gold finally said.

Belle blinked at him. “What?”

“I wanted to keep the house in the family, but my son doesn’t want anything to do with it. Hence why it now falls upon your shoulders to sell it.”

All of the pieces came together instantly. She did remember someone mention that the house and all of its assets had been left to Baelfire Gold, his only son and living family, in Mr. Gold’s will. But nothing had been claimed. The lawyers only stated that the house would not be claimed and was deemed a foreclosure.

“I could try to contact your son.” She offered. “Perhaps if you see him here--”

“No.” He said firmly. The air grew colder. “Bae has his own life now. It doesn’t matter.”

“Gold…”

“You just keep trying to sell the house, dearie.” His tone had grown lighter, more sing-song. “Perhaps you’ll eventually find a tenant that doesn’t scream when the television comes on by itself.”

Belle frowned as he turned away, floating back down the stairs. Honestly he was impossible. She had no idea how ghosts were normally supposed to act, but Gold simply acted as if nothing had changed. He lived in his house, scaring away anyone who she brought to sell it to. He was like a man yelling at everyone to get off his lawn. Everyone, except…

“You don’t want me to leave.” She blurted.

Gold froze halfway down the stairs, his form stuttering in and out of visibility for a moment. The air lost its chill. She’d caught him.

“You don’t care who the house goes to. The house never mattered to you. That’s why you didn’t have an alternative to your son on the will the way you did with your Shop.” He’d left his shop to Dove. Why wouldn’t he have done the same with the house? “You don’t want me to sell it because that means I’d stop spending time here…”

Gold paused, then turned, giving her a somewhat helpless look. Belle shook her head, bewildered. For a moment, her chest ached, and she wanted to see him smile again. This wasn’t their game. They poked and prodded and teased and pushed and sometimes had moments of levity when she didn’t have the heart to go back to her apartment right away after her usual inspection of the house. Somehow, she’d ended up LIKING spending her time with a ghost. No, with Mr. Gold.

“Gold, it’s okay to be lonely.”

“I’m not lonely.”

“Yes you are. That’s why you’re still around. You never had...anyone did you?”

“It doesn’t matter.” He said, waving her off as she started down the stairs to be level with him. Part of her, the part of her that was clearly daft, wanted to reach out to him. To hug him and promise that he wouldn’t be alone anymore. But her hands stayed at her side. “Just find someone nice for the house. With a family that will bring life to it. No dogs, though.”

“What about fish?” Belle asked, then turned to go down the stairs and turn into the living room. “Right here in this corner I think.”

Gold followed her. “What?”

“My fishtank. I can’t very well leave it at my apartment.” She said, “We’d have to make room for my bookshelves, though. But maybe I can turn one of the extra bedrooms into a library. I’ve always wanted a library.”

He shook his head. “What are you talking about, dearie.”

“I’m talking about buying the house.”

“You can’t afford this house.”

“I could. I was left a very considerable sum when my mother died from her side of the family.”

“That’s for travel.” He objected. “You mentioned to the Scarlets that you were saving it to travel.”

“I’m saving it for the life I want.” She corrected easily, turning to give him a smile. “Besides, I’m the only person in this town that won’t run for the hills at your hauntings.”

Slowly, Gold’s expression changed. His lips twitched into a smile, and he looked at her as if she didn’t exist. He stepped forward, opening his arms to embrace her, but his form only stepped through her, making her body tingly and stealing her breath.

“Belle?” He asked worriedly when she gasped.

“Let’s...We’ll work that out.” She said with a laugh. “I’ll have someone at the agency draw up the papers in the morning.”

“Alright.” Gold agreed. “You’re going to stay here. You mean that?”

Not for the first time, Belle wondered what kind of man he was truly when he was alive. He must have been very intimidating to garnish his reputation, but that couldn’t have been right. The man standing in front of her, this ghost who only longed for another to be in the same house as him, THIS was the man he truly was. It was too bad they didn’t meet when he was alive. Perhaps things could have been different.

“I mean it.” Belle promised. “I adore this house. And everything in it.” If she didn’t know any better, she would have said he blushed. Did ghosts blush? She’d have to do some research. “I’ll be back in the morning. There’s alot I have to get done tonight.”

“Alright. I’ll see you in the morning. This is a deal we have here, dearie. Ano one breaks a deal with me.”

“I don’t plan to.” Belle promised, retrieving her purse from the table. “But open the curtains. This place needs some light.”

“And a dusting. You should hire a maid.”

“One thing at a time.” Belle said with a laugh. “I’ll see you tomorrow Mr. Gold. Deal?”

He nodded, stepping forward to open the door for her. The hinges didn’t creak. “Deal.”

As she started her car she gave one more look to the house. At night, it truly did look haunted. Or would if it weren’t for the pink exterior. Still, she supposed pink wasn’t so bad. The lights in the house turned themselves off on their own, and before she started back to her apartment she saw the curtains of one of the windows pulled open.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Belle And Gold have settled into life together as unconventional roommates we’ll. Will that change when an unexpected visitor comes?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay I know I’ve been a bit radio silent and I’m late to the party for spooky stories but October was CRAZY! I got married and moved and yeah. But to make up for it here’s a fluffy chapter of the ghost roommate story! Hope y’all like it and feel free to leave all kinds of prompts for me!

“Gold you have to let me move SOMETHING!” Belle complained to the air as she walked into the living room.

All of the hard work she’d put into painstakingly re-arranging the place to suit herself was undone. She and Gold has argued for hours about how exactly the furniture could be placed, with him fighting every step of the way. The only thing that has remained constant was her fish tank in the corner, her reading nook in the library, and open windows.

“You don’t like how I arrange my house, dearie?” Gold’s voice came from a place she couldn’t pinpoint. It echoed slightly, as if he were trying to be spooky on purpose.

“My house.” Belle corrected, smiling when Gold shifted into focus, scowling at her. “You let me buy it you can’t complain.”

“Yes we’ll better you than anyone else.”

Gold snapped his fingers and the room shifted. The coffee table moved first, then the couch and loveseat. Before long the whole room was different, exactly how it’d been when she went to bed.

“If you weren’t a ghost I’d joke about my house being enchanted.”

Gold rolled his eyes, but the smile on his lips was not lost. He floated to the kitchen as Belle fed her fish and settled into the loveseat, coming back with a cup of tea.

“How can you do all that?” Belle asked.

If it weren’t for the floating and corporeal form, Belle would have forgotten Gold was dead altogether. He only shrugged, sitting beside her on the couch. The air around her grew colder and she gave a shiver.

“I’m a poltergeist. Or have you forgotten?”

“Sometimes I do.” She took the cup from his hands, letting the warm tea relax her. “The housewarming party was a success.”

Gold snorted, looking altogether displeased. But something in Belle told her he enjoyed seeing the house so full of life again, even if it was odd of her to have a party so long after she’d moved into the house.. She also had a feeling that was the reason for the furniture debachles. He’d let her have her way when she was preparing for the party, but the next day she’d found the furniture was back to the old layout from when she’d bought the house. The way it had been for years. Her roommate had trouble letting go of the past, and she wondered if that was a ghost thing.

“Where did we leave off?”

Gold’s eyes softened as she opened the book on the end table. Reading had become a favorite passtime of theirs in the months Belle had lived there, though it wasn’t easy at first. Gold had wanted to read over her shoulder, complaining she read too fast. But that soon proved ineffective by the fact that positioning was difficult with his corpreal form, and he refused to hover behind her. They’d finally settled on Belle reading aloud as Gold listened, looking over her shoulder or fidgeting as he liked. Some days, Belle let herself be fanciful and imagine herself tucked against his side with an arm around her shoulder or against his chest as he held her from behind.

Not for the first time, she found herself regretting not getting to know Gold when he was alive.

“Are you going to read, dearie, or sit there in a daze?”

Belle blinked, shaking the melancholy thoughts away and finding their page. However, she hadn’t gotten two paragraphs into the book before the doorbell rang.

“Odd. I wonder who that is.” Belle muttered.

“I’m sure it’s Gaston here to ask you on that date he promised.” Gold grumbled. “He was eyeing you all night at the party.”

“Is that a hint of jealousy, Gold?”

“I’m a ghost. Of course not.”

Belle grinned, knowing she was right. Gold seemed just as annoyed at the thought of other men dating her as he’d been to sell the house to anyone who wasn’t her. She could still hear the reasoning he’d used after she’d scolded him for scaring the dickens out of Will Scarlet with the odd sound of rattling chains when he dropped her off.

“Honestly, Gold I was only making us coffee.” Belle had grumbled to the poltergeist who seemed to be flickering in and out of her vision the way he did when he got too emotional or used up too much energy.

“Coffee leads to many things, dearie.”

“Like what? Stains on the rug?”

“Like odd men in my house.”

“My house.”

“And I can’t very well allow strange men in here. No telling what you’ll get up to.”

“Right.” Belle said with the roll of her eyes. “That’s the reason.”

Belle rose when the doorbell rang again, calling that it would be a moment. She almost hoped it was Gaston, if only to see the look on his face when he ran out of the so-called haunted house. However, it wasn’t Gaston at the door. It wasn’t anyone Belle recognized at all.

The man at her door gave her a sheepish wave. “Hi.”

She tilted her head. The man was a little taller than her, with dark hair and eyes that seemed impossibly familiar.

“Can I help you?” Belle asked.

“Yeah.” He said, scratching the back of his neck. His eyes darted around, gazing at the inside of the house with uncertainty. “I think. This is going to sound weird but my father, he used to own this house.”

The air at Belle’s back immediately went cold as ice, and she didn’t even have to turn to know Gold was behind her. No doubt his expression was as shocked as her own. “Your father?”

“Yes.” He said, giving her a grin that made Belle’s heart leap to her throat. They had the same eyes. The same nervous habit.

"Baelfire Gold." He said, extending a hand to her. It took Belle a moment before she realized she was supposed to take it. "I mostly go by Neal now. It's...nice to meet you?"

"Yeah." Belle stammered. "Yeah it is."


End file.
